Except Rondo didn't have a choice in the matter since it was a trade... If Cousins came to Dallas it would only be because he and Rick had a mutual interest. That said, I'm betting any team that has max money to offer this summer will be offering it to him first -- and I doubt Dallas is at the top of his list.

But still...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melonhead

DSJ
WES
BARNES
BAGLEY
COUSINS

YES.

Hell yes, please.

__________________
“It’s the Dirk Nowitzki effect on their offense. As a defense, you absolutely overreact to every situation he’s
in -- or even that he’s not in -- and then you lose all sight of your team defensive rules." --Erik Spoelstra

Honestly I expect the Mavs to still offer him the Max. Cuban and co don't want to be drafting in the top 5 again, they have said as much with the tanking comments. And as far as comparing the injury to Wes- I still don't think it was entirely the injury that did him in here early. It was bad pg play with Dwill and very very little talent allowing him the same kind of open shots as he was used to. He also got it in his head that he was suddenly able to take guys off the dribble just because he was a max contract player. Maybe he did that because he was just trying too much but the point is he was wide open with Lillard and a prime LMA. Then he came here and had what... Parsons and an aged Dirk and Dwill? He finally looked like the sniper we thought we were getting when DSJ was creating havoc in the paint for him. The real decline will be lateral quickness on defense and athleticism- which hurts Cousins a whole lot more than it did Wes who was able to at least start guarding 3's instead of 2's. Cousins already isn't a great defender and now he'd only be able to adequately defend the plodder type centers. You can forget him being useful at all in pnr defense which is what the league is all about now. If you had Bagley you could maybe hide him though. A team that has been chasing a big free agent for a decade practically is going to offer the max to him regardless of injury, especially considering this FA class is pretty underwhelming. I can almost guarantee it. Unless our medical staff says no the injury doesn't dissuade us imo.

Put me firmly in the avoid at all costs category. Have we not learned anything about the way the league is trending? Back-to-basket high-volume centers are a thing of the past. Add injury and attitude concerns and I’m a hard no. Just look at how successful NO has been without him spacing the floor with Mirotic at the 4 and AD at the 5.

Zach Lowe has a great article on the subject. Let me sum up his point in one sentence. Even when healthy

Quote:

New Orleans was better all season with Davis going solo.

Obviously we don't have an Anthony Davis. What we do have is two guys who aren't elite shooters and operating inside the three point line (DSJ and Barnes). Cousins is going to clog up the middle like the same way he did in New Orleans and Sacramento. No thank you.

I suspect the Mavs may do Counsin's agent Jarinn Akana (also reps Barea and Collinsworth) a solid by entering the mix to drive the market up for Cousins and reduce New Orlean's leverage. I fully expect the Mavs to make the right decision and pass on the dude.

Zach Lowe has a great article on the subject. Let me sum up his point in one sentence. Even when healthy

Obviously we don't have an Anthony Davis. What we do have is two guys who aren't elite shooters and operating inside the three point line (DSJ and Barnes). Cousins is going to clog up the middle like the same way he did in New Orleans and Sacramento. No thank you.

I suspect the Mavs may do Counsin's agent Jarinn Akana (also reps Barea and Collinsworth) a solid by entering the mix to drive the market up for Cousins and reduce New Orlean's leverage. I fully expect the Mavs to make the right decision and pass on the dude.

Well to offense to Barnes but he's not stopping me from getting a player of Cousins caliber.

Well to offense to Barnes but he's not stopping me from getting a player of Cousins caliber.

Cousins is no longer a “player of Cousins caliber” though. No one is ever the same after a significant achilles injury. Even less so when you’re putting 250 pounds of pressure on the injured ankle IMO.